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Show 6 There must be a union Manpower Resources-(Continued from preceding page) tial to effective Arms Company spends much of its energy circumventing the desire of its emplovees to organize and enjoy the fruits of collective bargaining. Much of the shortage in manpower in Nalt Lake City could be eased if Remington would tackle the job of production in the same fashion as American Smelting & Refining Company at Garfield, or any one of the concerns whose officials are quoted in this article. NUMEROUS ies in this A ruptcy. area were Successful on the verge of bank- to give all work- committee work. committee members cannot be handpicked. They must come from the upper tier of union men and women who have fought their way to the top in union activity. Any worker with acknowledged capacity must be eligible for committee work. EVADERS And Remington is not the only laggard in the Utah-Nevada area. The McGill smelter, the Ruth and Kimberly mines, Utah Copper, U. S. Fuel and other coal operators, and indeed, an overwhelming majority of the industrial corporations doing business in Utah and Nevada, evade the spirit of the Nelson-Murray program. There is reason to believe that many of the troubles of the coal operators could be solved with active labor-management production committees functioning in Carbon County, Utah. Coal is a sick industry. Until the war boom came along most of the mining compan- shop Obviously, labor must name its own committee members. They must be directly responsible to organized workers for the success of labor-management production goals. In short, they must be full partners with management in the task of greater productivity. In no other way may the creative impulses, and the urge to achieve, inherent in all workers, find adequate expression. Instead of utilizing the help and the suggestions offered by the union to stimulate pro- Remington SEARCHLIGHT ers job security; confidence in management; full equality in bargaining power; and a definite share in production § responsibility, without which there can be no proper approach to the intensive cooperation essen- plan of operation is one of those cost-plus deals that make for extravagance and waste with dismal per capita production records. The labor turnover is terrific. duction, THE Otherwise tion. there is no true labor representa- CONCLUSIONS The conclusion is irresistible that the serious manpower shortage now beginning to play havoe with civilian and industrial economy in Utah and Nevada, can be effectively eased by the prompt organization of genuine labormanagement production committees. Local and national examples ot successful production committees have been cited, and the views of prominent industrialists have been quoted. The case is well established. Labor- dozen or more folded up. Even the enactment of the Guffey coal bill was not enough to put the industry on a sound financial footing. Gas, oil, and electricity drove coal out of the smelting industry and from other fields. The coal industry with its haphazard production methods, and its antiquated practices was unable to stand competition. Beyond question the organization of production committees now would stimulate present production and offer a solution for problems arising in an era of depression that is likely to follow the war. management production committees can pro- REQUISITES FOR PRODUCTION COMMITTEES There are certain requisites for successful labor-management production committees that cannot be side-stepped or avoided. Anyhow, collective bargaining already is entrenched—as it should be—and is here to stay. And being entrenched, it is folly to ig- vide the extra manpower resources that can win the war without disrupting civilian economy. Certainly there is nothing to lose, and everything to gain by utilizing them. The contention that the formation of such committees will entrench collective bargaining even if true—is beside the question. What if it does, if in so doing it contributes the mar- cin for winning the war and sustaining the home front? That plea is only a pretext from congenital the die-hards who facets of. modern ‘“ontinued shut their eves to industry. on following page) |